The Nigerian Institute of Public Relations has pledged to formalise a Memorandum of Understanding with Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, covering food security, peace advocacy and youth empowerment, as the association closed its third Nigerian Public Relations Week with a visit to the historic university on Saturday April 26, 2026.

The visit, led by Yomi Badejo-Okusanya, chairman of the planning committee of NIPRW 2026, brought NIPR members, and industry leaders to the ABU campus for a meeting with the Vice Chancellor, Professor Adamu Ahmed, that produced concrete commitments from both institutions.

Badejo-Okusanya told the Vice Chancellor that NIPR was ready to support ABU’s initiatives and called for a formal partnership. “In whatever way we can support the initiatives of ABU, NIPR will be glad to. If there is a way we can sign a Memorandum of Understanding on how we can help project the values of ABU, we would be happy to do that,” he said.

Reflecting on the week’s activities, Badejo-Okusanya connected the ABU visit to NIPR’s broader food security mission. “One of the things that energised us to partner is the realisation that we must be able to feed ourselves. That is where NIPR comes in,” he said.

He also shared that a visit to the Minister of Livestock Development’s farm the previous day had opened members’ eyes to the commercial potential of livestock farming. “The minister showed us that livestock is not something you stumble on. He was showing us a small goat that sells for one million naira because they are breeders. All of us are now thinking that we can start some livestock farming and really do something with it,” he said.

Vice Chancellor Professor Adamu Ahmed welcomed the partnership, stating that ABU was actively seeking collaboration in food security and pointed to the university’s vast land resources and its leading animal genetics programme as foundations for serious agricultural partnership.

He noted that the university’s livestock research had consistently placed it at the top of rankings in West Africa. “In West Africa, we are on top. We have the animal genetics. Everything has been coming. It is another way of fixing things,” he said.

During the visit, the delegation also toured the Theatre Arts Department where students performed a dramatisation of the life of Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto and ABU’s first Chancellor.

Theater Art Students, ABU Zaria

Badejo-Okusanya committed NIPR’s support for a potential national tour of the production. “We saw the Theatre Group performance and we are very impressed. If they decide to take the play on a national tour, NIPR will be there to support, because it should not be something limited to the school alone,” he said.

The group also visited the university’s Sculpture Garden, one of the largest botanical spaces in Nigeria spanning 100 hectares.

The ABU visit marked the closing activity of Croc City 2026, the third edition of NIPRW, which was held in Kaduna under the theme “Food Security: From Policy Paper to Public Plate — The Imperatives of Public Relations.” Previous editions were held in Ogun State with a focus on finance and in Akwa Ibom State with a focus on solid minerals.